ISLAMABAD: Online claims that the Ruet-e-Hilal Committee, a government department responsible for announcing the sighting of the new moon, costs the exchequer PKR 7 billion and employs over 3,000 people have been found to be false.
According to Abdul Qudoos, director research and reference wing of the Ministry of Religious Affairs and Interfaith Harmony, the Ruet-e-Hilal Committee has only 21 central members, including Ulema, Islamic scholars and officials from various ministries.
None of them receives a salary. In addition, the committee has a general section consisting of an officer, a staff member, a typist, and an assistant.
Qudoos further clarified that the budget for the moon-sighting committee was an estimated PKR 3 million for the year, which was not disbursed to members as salaries but to meet the travel expenses of the committee members.
The committee holds four central meetings annually in Ramadan, Shawwal, Dhu al-Hijjah, and Muharram.
Maulana Abdul Khabeer Azad, the chairman of the Ruet-e-Hilal Committee, also confirmed that there are only 21 members who are not paid any salaries.
Ruet-e-Hilal Committee expenses
They are given economy class tickets for travel and provided with food and accommodation at a local hotel for one day.
Abdul Ghafoor, a central member from Peshawar, and Mufti Raghib Naeemi, a central member from Lahore, also confirmed that the committee has only 21 central members.
Similarly, even in the federal budget for the fiscal years 2022 and 2023, the amount allocated for moon-sighting services is Rs5 million, not Rs7 billion, as was being claimed online.
The online claims that the Ruet-e-Hilal Committee costs the exchequer Rs7 billion and employs over 3,000 people are false.
The committee has only 21 central members who are not paid any salaries, and the yearly budget is between Rs3 million to Rs5 million.
